Florida has always been "off", let's be honest

[One Black Sheep]

Let's face the facts. Florida has always been a very kooky place...Who can forget the 2000 election? Seriously? Florida's fault for such incompetence and all the controversy, it was a royal fuck up like we have NEVER seen before.

Florida is a land full of bugs and mosquitoes and humidity, and flat land, and swamps...it just is a horrible place. Let's admit it. There is a reason they have called it "Flori-DUH" for years.

I would never want to set foot in the place. Some states are an embarrassment to America, and Florida is one of 'em. Something in the water down there, perhaps. Check this article out for some more of the same Florida craziness:

Florida - The Dark Side to the Sunshine State

But Florida has a dark side, a seedy Southern underbelly with a redneck-esque attitude and some shocking stories to tell and no I’m not talking about Flo Rida the “rapper”. Some of the bigger, more shocking stories have travelled over to our dingy, grey, rain soaked shores over the last few months, highlights including the murder of an unarmed Trayvon Martin by a local neighbourhood watch turned vigilante George Zimmerman which has sparked international outrage and protests across the whole of the United States, the murder of two British tourists by Shawn Tyson during an apparent drug deal that went tits up and who of course could forget the Miami bath salts zombie cannibal attack of last year.

But it appears that this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the bonkers nature of the Florida news scene. It appears that if you want to hear some of the weirdest, craziest, most fucked up news stories the world has to offer then you need to be tuned to a Florida news channel.

http://www.sickchirpse.com/florida-dark-side/

[cherokeeprogressive]

1. Clue...

less.

[B2G]

2. Who slipped the 'ludes into the DU water cooler today?

[cali]

5. Jaysus. Ain't that the truth. Nut city in GD today.

[RKP5637]

53. LOL, sure seems that way. n/t

[djean111]

3. For myself, and on behalf of Floridians everywhere - thank you for letting us know you will not be

setting foot here.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

19. LOL. nt

[RKP5637]

54. Yep, I was thinking the same. n/t

[msongs]

4. do not take small children to disney world. it may be a death sentence for them nt

[KamaAina]

6. On the bright side, it has provided Carl Hiaasen with a lucrative career

[ancianita]

7. Its beaches are beautiful and the larger urban areas, save Orlando, are sane. I grew up there, a

transplant from Maine, and went to Florida State, then on to Northwestern near Chicago.

While Florida's nature is wild and scruffy, it's still interesting and its bird world is amazing.

I'd say from living there that it's 50% backward.

But if I were you, I'd step foot along the coasts. You might be pleasantly surprised at the friendliness of people there -- mostly northerners, midwesterners and Canadians -- and the healing, gentle ocean experience.

My two cents.

[snooper2]

22. Well, we went on vacation last year- Hung out between Destin and Panama City

Stayed on a condo on the beach-

Going down the strip I saw some weird mo-fo's and some creepy looking folks from all walks of life LOL-

I guess the good thing is everyone is mostly shirtless so you can tell by the quality of the tattoos what you may be dealing with at any given moment in time

[RKP5637]

55. Must have been those damn tourists again!

[Warpy]

36. My parents lived on the east coast, on a barrier island

and a 20 minute bike ride to Cocoa Beach, one of the less touristy and more unspoiled beaches there, wide and sandy and with waves that could be surfed and water close to body temperature.

That is until Jebbie got in and fast tracked all the construction his buddies wanted to do. Now that formerly unspoiled beach is walled off by a row of high rise condos and parking structures and you can't get to the beach any more. I understand it's just like that on a lot of Florida's formerly beautiful beaches.

I could see the attraction it held for my dad in those pre Jebbie years. My mother said she liked to see condos being built because they meant Florida would sink faster. Were the beaches still unspoiled and unblocked and accessible, I might visit now and then in the winter. However, now you couldn't pay me enough to go there for any reason.

[geomon666]

8. Thank you for the generalization.

We needed more of that.

[ksoze]

9. Just pay the fine and get it over with

Everyone gets caught speeding sometime. Its nothing to be ashamed of. Certainly no reason to miss out on one of our most dynamic and beach-bountiful states. Send in the money and welcome back soon!

[MariaThinks]

10. not floridian, but a complely useless generalization

[Ace Rothstein]

11. I have no issues with Florida.

But have always found this gif to be funny.

[One Black Sheep]

12. LOL, now we are talkin'...I'm not sure we would be missing anything either.

[djean111]

23. Come to think of it, neither would we Floridians....

[Ace Rothstein]

35. Florida has the nicest beaches in the lower 48.

The gulf coast is absolutely gorgeous.

[PJMcK]

31. Don't worry, Bugs, it'll happen soon enough

As the ice caps and glaciers melt, Florida will be among the first land masses to be engulfed by the rising seas.

[HooptieWagon]

13. I think OP signed up just to post that.

[monmouth4]

14. I don't think it's Florida that's "off."....n/t

[pinboy3niner]

16. +1. nt

[Tommy_Carcetti]

20. Ha ha.

[RKP5637]

56. K&R

[GusBob]

15. Rec. Such a bold, astute and valuable post. This is what makes DU really important

So. Where are you from?

[steve2470]

17. oh boy another bash Florida OP!

I'm so glad the author educated me, a lifelong Floridian, on why my state is fucked up. I'll be sure to overlook any bad things in your state.

Orlando is also JUST FUCKING FINE. The tragedy tarnished our great name, but we're rebounding and hopefully nothing remotely close to it will ever happen again. This could have easily happened in any larger city in the country. There's nothing special about Orlando that made it happen.

Once again, solidarity in a time of crisis and tragedy with the LGBT community, especially in my town Orlando.

The news media has made Florida the whipping boy of the nation, when crazy shit happens all over the country.

I'd say what I think about the posters bashing Florida and Orlando, but I'd get my very first hide. NOT WORTH MY TIME AND ENERGY.

Don't waste your time trying to tear me down, it won't work and I won't respond.

[GusBob]

21. Dont hold back

Notice how the OP wont say where he's from. I am certain it is paradise

[Tommy_Carcetti]

25. I'm sure it doesn't have......GASP.....FLAT LAND!!!!!!

Get thee my fainting couch, over our wretched FLAT LAND!!!!!

[steve2470]

27. the way DU has become, I'd get a hide for sure

EVERY single place in the country, hell the world, has problems. EVERY. SINGLE. PLACE.

GusBob, I know you know what I just said, but I had to say it. I'm a progressive, and I get really tired of people from other states gleefully bashing Florida. Do they think that motivates people to do better ? It doesn't motivate me. I didn't need anyone to dwell on our shortcomings.

People love the fact we pay no state income tax here, and voila, that creates a lack of revenue to do good things. The state lottery has been paying for most of education for years, when it was NOT supposed to supplant the usual revenue. People everywhere want good things for nothing, and Florida is no exception. No income tax and nice warm weather has attracted millions of people to live here for decades.

At any rate..... I know the Florida bashing will continue, and I'll go back to my usual vow of silence. Best wishes to you, Gusbob.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

28. They bash it, yet they always seem to love to come here.

Especially in the winter. I wonder why.

[steve2470]

30. precisely! nt

[RKP5637]

57. And thousands of people keep moving to Florida. I wish many of them would just stay home. n/t

[Texasgal]

59. I feel your pain..

Texas has the same bash-level. It's fucked up...

I stand with you and your state. My heart goes out to all affected in Orlando. <3

[steve2470]

60. thank you, I stand with Texans against region bashing

Thank you again.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

18. I love it here. Wouldn't live anywhere else, except maybe Hawaii.

So you can respectfully take your opinion and.....well, you know the rest.

Crazy people doing crazy things are everywhere in all 50 states. Stop acting so high and mighty.

Meanwhile I'm going to keep on enjoying the sun, the surf, the nature and everything else I love about this place.

[RKP5637]

58. It's a beautiful state and the people are friendly and nice. n/t

[obamanut2012]

24. I am really tired of these insulting posts about Florida

You have no idea what it's like to live here, especially in very blue, very diverse SOFL.

[Aerows]

26. You linked to a site

that advertises for BestGore.com

[oberliner]

29. This is from July 2013

Not really appropriate to be posting now under the circumstances in my opinion.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

33. But "Florida Man" jokes are just sooooooooo hilarious.

I mean, it's not like you can do that for any other states. Just Florida. Only Florida. Nobody else but Florida.

https://twitter.com/calimantales

https://twitter.com/a_texas_man

https://twitter.com/oregonianman

[Paladin]

32. Hey, DU Floridians: Welcome to our world. Sincerely, DU Texans.

Nothing like a little region bashing to make your day complete.

[steve2470]

34. I feel for you Texans also

You'll never find me taking cheap shots at Texas, but many on DU leap at any opportunity to bash Texas, Florida or any southern state.

We're all just stupid ignorant rednecks down here, don't ya know.

Best wishes to you, Paladin, and all Texans.

[Paladin]

37. Very gracious of you. Thanks. (nt)

[rppper]

39. I grew up in the Houston area and east Texas

It was a great place in the 70s and early 80s....great schools, great people....now my district elects people like Louis Gohmert...it hurts my soul to see what it's become now...

[rppper]

38. Central Floridian here...

I live 5 minutes from the shore, 5 minutes from the worlds most famous speedway, an hour from the worlds most famous mouse...It's a crazy place here, and we have our share of problems, but I'd like to add that our voters, in this case voters of Puerto Rican descent, gave Florida to Obama in 2012. Orlando is probably one of the most diverse city's this side of San Francisco. We have beautiful lakes and woodlands to complement our beaches. The smaller coastal communities are pretty laid back from my 20 years of experience living here. Yes we have our asshats and yes we have a douche-nozzle governor...most states do it seems...there are a lot of good, honest hardworking people here...we have an uphill Battle, but we are not Texas yet, not by a long shot. Florida is my second home...I've had to watch Texas devolve to it's current state, I'll be damned if I let this beautiful state get sucked down the toilet too....

[PeaceNikki]

40. Plus you have manatees! I was able to swim with them in the beautiful Crystal River area.

Florida has a lot more good than bad, though I could never live there. I'm a Midwest gal and have a very strong appreciation for hard freezes which kill the worst bugs. And a strong distaste for humidity. I'll still visit, though!!

I'm really sorry you guys are having such a tragic week. It's horrifying. And I'm really sorry people are bashing your state during this tough time.

Peace.

[rppper]

49. The bugs grow on you....lol

But you will never get me to go camping here, and this is coming from someone raised in the sticks of east Texas!

The humidity is bad, but we generally get nice breezes coming across the peninsula or off of the Atlantic here. We have enough events and interesting things to do here, so life is never really boring.

I've been here through the 2000 elections, the hurricanes in 04 and 05, the Martin case...sometimes it can be a tumultuous place, but I love the warmth, the beautiful beaches and intercoastal waterways and my wonderful, diverse friends I've found here....I'll never leave here either!

And if you, or anyone reading this ever find yourself down for an event or the Orlando parks, by all means don't be a stranger!

[PeaceNikki]

50. I'll definitely be there in late fall.

My brother in law has been working for the past several years as an optical engineer on a really cool weather satellite which is due to launch in October. He's very excited and I plan on being there to see it off.

[rppper]

51. Hopefully it's a dusk or dawn launch.

They're really a sight to watch.

[PeaceNikki]

41. The people of Florida are experiencing immense grief right now.

I find it in extremely poor taste to use the tragedies they're experiencing as an opportunity to take digs at them.

They've had a very rough week, have some compassion and delete this post.

[Haveadream]

42. +1

It is the time to be compassionate and send kindness, not insults, to Florida.

[Quackers]

45. Well said. nt

[steve2470]

61. yes thank you! nt

[EX500rider]

43. yes it's horrible here....please stay away..

[Fla_Democrat]

44. We will miss you...

Take I-95 north, or I-10 west.

[JI7]

46. this is not the time to post something like this

[Dalai_1]

47. Joey Scarborough

.. Won elections in Fla....'nuff said-
Spent winters there as a child near Clearwater and loved it..
Many years later lived in Pensacola a few years..

[Sancho]

48. Yep...and I live here!

https://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/crazy-things-that-have-already-happened-this-year-in-florida?utm_term=.en67MZYbZ#.hlM7kDb3D

[RKP5637]

52. FFS, where do you go in Florida. Much of it's a beautiful state and people are friendly. n/t